Category Archives: Labor party

Tony Abbott: ‘So-called’ climate science isn’t settled’ – politics live

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Day two of the 2019 Australian election campaign is under way, with an opening salvo from the government. All the day’s events, live

The AEC has laid out its plan for counting the 16 million or so votes the federal election should bring in:

Following years of planning, fine tuning and improvements to AEC systems – plus the experience gained from running nine by-elections since 2017 – the AEC expects to:

Bill Shorten and the former AMA president, Brian Owler, the Labor candidate for Bennelong, is announcing Labor’s key policy for today: $125m for cancer research.

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Labor fumes at ‘dodgy Treasury costings’ as Coalition alleges ‘tax hit on the economy’

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Coalition says Labor promises will be funded by ‘$387bn of new taxes on your income, your house, your savings’

The first costings war of the 2019 election campaign is underway, with the Morrison government releasing what it says are new Treasury numbers concluding Labor’s “tax hit on the economy” will be $387bn, not the $200bn figure it has been spruiking in its attack lines for months.

But the shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, blasted back before the new material was published by news outlets, declaring on social media the calculations were “dodgy” and observing that “someone” in Treasury had some explaining to do, because the department has said previously it doesn’t cost opposition policies.

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Toyota distances itself from Liberal ads falsely claiming Labor wants to tax cars

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The ads use Facebook functionality to target users with an interest in particular car brands, including Toyota Hilux utes

Toyota has said that it was not consulted on a Liberal party campaign that uses targeted Facebook ads to falsely claim Bill Shorten wants to tax popular car brands including the Toyota Hilux and other utility vehicles.

“Toyota Australia were not consulted on the use of the HiLux in government materials.”

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Labor promises $500m to cut public hospital waiting times for cancer treatment

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Scott Morrison hints Coalition may try to match Bill Shorten’s $2.3bn cancer package

Labor has promised to spend $500m to cut public hospital wait times for cancer treatment.

The policy, released on Tuesday, is part of the $2.3bn cancer package unveiled by Bill Shorten in his budget reply.

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Coalition’s proposed anti-corruption body flawed and weak, police veteran warns

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Chris Douglas calls for federal integrity commission to be handed wide-ranging powers

A long-serving former senior federal police officer has warned that the Coalition’s proposed integrity commission is flawed, weak and would “not be capable of responding to current corruption threats”.

Chris Douglas, a 31-year veteran of the Australian federal police, has called for the integrity commission to be handed wide-ranging powers, including the ability to recruit informants, use undercover operatives, make arrests and deploy wire taps.

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Post-Christchurch social media laws are ‘world-first’, says Christian Porter – politics live

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The Labor leader will give his party’s 2019 budget reply tonight, with bigger tax cuts for workers among the promises. All the day’s events, live

We are in the downhill slide for the final question time for the final time of the 45th parliament.

Cathy McGowan managed to bring everyone together for her farewell

Cathy McGowan and her Indi army of supporters in the entrance hall of Parliament House after she delivered her valedictory @AmyRemeikis @murpharoo @GuardianAus #PoliticsLive #auspol @Indigocathy pic.twitter.com/JFBXyn53ol

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Australia passes social media law penalising platforms for violent content

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Labor supports legislation in response to Christchurch shooting that threatens jail for executives, despite media companies’ concerns

The Australian parliament has passed legislation to crack down on violent videos on social media, despite furious reaction from the tech industry, media companies and legal experts.

The Labor opposition combined with the ruling Liberal-National Coalition to pass the law on Thursday, despite warning it won’t allow prosecution of social media executives as promised by the government. Tech giants expressed the opposite concern that it may criminalise anyone in their companies for a failure to remove violent material.

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Australia budget 2019: Newstart backflip disrupts government’s big sell

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Coalition’s about face on one-off payment prompts Labor to declare the budget is already ‘falling apart’

The Morrison government’s big post-budget sell has been disrupted by its own late-night decision to backflip on providing a one-off payment to recipients of Newstart.

The government used Tuesday night’s budget to provide supplements to welfare recipients, with $75 for singles and $125 for couples going to 2.4 million pensioners, 744,000 disability pensioners, 280,000 carers, 242,000 single parents and 225,000 veterans and their dependents – but not to people on unemployment benefits.

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Australia federal budget 2019: reaction to Josh Frydenberg’s first budget – as it happened

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Australia’s treasurer says the budget is ‘back in the black’. This blog is now closed

And that is where we are going to end tonight, before we all turn into pumpkins.

But don’t worry, we’ll be back early tomorrow morning for all the fallout. Plus, you know, parliament.

Mike Bowers has been out and about:

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Penny Wong warns racism and hate speech in parliament threaten democracy

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Labor senator says those who ‘see political or commercial advantage in heightening cynicism’ are diminishing civic life

Penny Wong will say that “racism is a threat to our democracy” in a speech taking aim at those who see “political or commercial advantage” in increased cynicism towards public institutions.

The Labor senator is set to warn that hate speech and extremist views in parliament and a “lack of unity in response to these” have harmed democracy, pointing the finger in part at the Coalition for its tardy response to condemn One Nation in the 45th parliament.

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NSW election: Gladys Berejiklian confident Coalition will win a majority

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Government clings to power despite big gains from minor parties and independents

Gladys Berejiklian has said she is confident the Coalition will return to government in New South Wales with a razor-thin majority as counting continues after Saturday’s state election.

The premier, who is the daughter of Armenian migrants, reiterated her objection to comments by the Labor leader, Michael Daley, about young Sydneysiders leaving the city and being replaced by “Asians”, which surfaced in the final week of the campaign, suggesting her background had helped her connect with voters.

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Gladys Berejiklian leads Coalition to third term in government in NSW

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Premier says she will work closely with minor parties as prospect of minority government remains

Gladys Berejiklian has led the Coalition to a third term in government in New South Wales despite a rising tide of minor parties and independents, and has become the first woman elected premier of the state at a general election.

Many seats were still too close to call on Saturday evening but one thing was certain – the night had been a huge disappointment for Labor, with no chance of forming government and no major improvement in their statewide primary vote compared with the election four years earlier.

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Labor pledges $60m to divert vulnerable borrowers from payday lenders

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Plan would enable 76,800 low-cost loans each year to those in financial hardship

Labor has pledged $60m for financial services that divert vulnerable borrowers from high-interest payday lenders.

The policy picks up on the recommendation of a Senate inquiry to expand no interest loans schemes to prevent low-income Australians being plunged into a cycle of debt due to unexpected expenses such as medical procedures and broken household appliances.

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Bangers and ballots: everything you need to know about the NSW election

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There’s a good chance Saturday’s poll will produce a hung parliament. Here’s how to make your vote count – and where to buy your democracy sausage

Almost 5.3 million people are enrolled to vote at more than 8,000 voting stations in Saturday’s state election. New South Wales has fixed terms, with elections held on the fourth Saturday in March every four years since 1995. About a quarter of voters cast their ballot before election day in 2015, and this is expected to rise in 2019. Almost 850,000 people had voted by Thursday morning.

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Michael Daley claims Asian workers taking young people’s jobs in Sydney

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NSW Labor leader says ‘no offence’ meant after video surfaces of him saying ‘our kids are moving out and foreigners are moving in’

The New South Wales opposition leader, Michael Daley is under sustained pressure over his comments in a 2018 video in which he said young Sydneysiders were leaving and being replaced by workers from Asia.

Despite repeatedly apologising “if anyone took offence” Daley insisted his comments were not racist or dogwhistling and were about housing affordability in Sydney.

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Labor’s abortion policy: all the issues explained

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The opposition’s plan to allow open up sexual health services to more women raises key questions about access, cost and state laws

Labor has announced a national sexual and reproductive health strategy to improve access to contraception and abortion. A major plank of this policy is to “support all women to access termination services in public hospitals”, raising a number of crucial questions:

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Julian Burnside takes on Josh Frydenberg as Greens candidate for Kooyong

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The refugee advocate sets up a four-way contest with the treasurer, Liberal-turned-independent Oliver Yates and Labor

The human rights lawyer and refugee advocate Julian Burnside will run as the Greens candidate for Kooyong at the next election.

In a statement that appeared in Nine newspapers and the Australian on Tuesday the prominent barrister said he would take on the treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, in the blue-ribbon Liberal seat because he believes the “political system is broken”.

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Labor pledges $60m to help victims of domestic violence rebuild their lives

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Bill Shorten says money raised from banking fairness fund will provide tailored support packages for families

“Instead of asking ‘why did she stay’, we need to ask ‘where could she go’.”

Reframing the question of what options victims of family and domestic violence have in deciding to leave is behind Labor’s latest policy announcement which would see $60m committed to a program which helps tailor support packages for families needing to rebuild their lives.

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Last four refugee children leave Nauru for resettlement in US

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Move follows intense campaign by refugee advocates for all children sent to the island by the Australian government to be taken off

The last four children living in Australian government-run offshore processing on Nauru have now left the island, amid a group of 19 people flown to the US for resettlement.

The group includes a number of Iranians, according to refugee advocates, contradicting persistent suspicions that Donald Trump’s travel ban on six nationalities was blocking refugees from the resettlement scheme.

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